Flora for Fauna

04/22/2026

Check out some of the lovely early spring blooming species installed at Moosylvania Marketing in Maplewood, Missouri less than two years ago. Starting on the left, Wild Columbine [Aquilegia canadensis] is a dependable bloomer with cute little red and yellow flowers and beautiful foliage that lasts until frost, long after the blooms have faded. Golden grounsel, with its numerous tiny yellow flowers, provides food to emerging bees and other pollinators. Virginia bluebells [Mertensia virginica] are ephemeral in nature, blooming for three to four weeks in the spring before the entire plant goes dormant until next spring. At Moosylvania, they are interplanted with Ostrich ferns [Matteuccia struthiopteris], a tough Missouri native fern that begins emerging from dormancy about the same time the bluebells are preparing to sleep. Lastly, check out the Dwarf Crested Iris’ [Iris cristata] lavendar-blue blossoms. Under the right conditions, these tough little plants are great ground covers in the native plant garden.

04/21/2026

Tomorrow, Wednesday, is Earth Day. This coming weekend, April 25 and 26, the St. Louis Earth Day Festival is taking place at Forest Park. It is a great festival with lots of vendor booths and activities for everyone, as well as some great food and drink. earthday365 puts on the festival each year.

04/09/2026

Forest ReLeaf of Missouri is looking for some help watering trees and related tasks this summer.

02/17/2026

RIP Reverend Jessie Jackson.

02/05/2026

We just earned our Gold Seal of Transparency from
! Keep up with our accomplishments on our
: https://app.candid.org/profile/15083915/flora-for-fauna/?pkId=a61c6ec7-1186-4498-8a39-f88258226715&isActive=true

01/20/2026

for Life Academy, St. Louis City’s first charter school, received funding from the Dept. of Conservation’s Community Conservation Cost-Share Program to help pay for installation of the Elementary School’s Pollinator Garden located at S. 7th Street and Geyer Avenue and a new native shrub and tree hedge around the school’s parking lot, starting near the intersection of S. 7th Street and Lafayette Avenue, continuing down S. 7th Street to Geyer Avenue, and wrapping around the parking lot on Geyer Avenue. The hedge is nearly two city blocks long! MDC’s Cost-Share Program supports sustainable practices in municipal and developing areas, including parks, schools, and connecting private land to public projects. Flora for Fauna used only native plants at each site because natives improve stormwater management and help with habitat connectivity such as providing food and habitat for St. Louis area pollinators and other small creatures. Both the hedge and pollinator garden are easily viewed from public sidewalks.
Some species found in the Pollinator Garden include Nannyberry, a small tree that bears fruit relished by birds; Beautyberry, a native shrub with beautiful foliage, tiny pink flowers in spring which are followed in fall by love fuchsia colored berries that are eventually eaten by wildlife; and Purple Poppy Mallow, a beautiful spreading flowering plant with flowers resembling cups of red wine. The School’s future hedge is comprised of Eastern Red Bud Trees, Eastern Ninebark, Arrowwood viburnum and Deciduous Holly. In a few years, the hedge should easily reach six feet in height.
Despite rigorous academics and required football practice, several male Lift for Life high school students helped plant and mulch the native hedge. Thanks guys! Also, thanks to the Missouri Department of Conservation for the funds and for their technical expertise during project planning. A special thank you to Rich Farrell of Pollinator Patches and of Garden Beautiful for their expertise and HARD work on the project.

12/01/2025

09/21/2025

Pay for play

In April 2024, Trump reportedly asked oil executives at a meeting at his Mar-a-Lago resort to give him $ 1 billion for his reelection campaign. In return for their cash, he promised to grant their policy wishes after he was elected. In exchange for the $ 445 million Big Oil spent in 2024, Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] proposes to eliminate one of the most important protections against climate change in America. Trump has already signed dozens of pro fossil fuel executive actions.

History: In 2009, the EPA issued a decision, based on overwhelming scientific evidence, known as the “Endangerment Finding.” Simply put, the Endangerment Finding states that pollution from greenhouse gases is dangerous to humans’ health, safety and future. This finding gives the EPA the legal power to limit dangerous emissions from motor vehicles, power plants and factories.

Significance: If the EPA repeals the Endangerment Finding, they will no longer regulate fossil fuel pollution, period. That means that the federal government loses its most powerful tool for slowing climate change, resulting in even more extreme heat, floods, storms and wildfires and higher costs for insurance, energy, food and healthcare. That action will impact everyone: farmers, outdoor workers, children with asthma, heat-vulnerable citizens, and communities that already live in heavily polluted areas. We must not let this happen.

You can take action: It is not too late to submit a public comment on this proposed action by midnight on Monday, September 22. Follow the link below for a sample comment letter from Columbia University School of Law. While the sample letter is intended for use by local governments, folks can modify it for personal or organizational use: https://climate.law.columbia.edu/content/template-letter-endangerment-finding-rulemaking-local-government-use.

06/18/2025

, located in Maplewood, Missouri honored Flora for Fauna with a lovely plaque they installed in their native plant garden in honor of us. Thank you so much!

05/15/2025

Amsonia ciliata, known as the thread leaved blue star or fringed blue star, is a herbaceous blooming perennial native to Missouri. It blooms in May [as in right now!]. Its light blue flowers are star-like, appearing at the end of its erect stems. The narrow green leaves turn beautiful shades of yellow in fall. Blue stars are best used in borders, rock gardens, cottage gardens and open woodland areas. It is particularly attractive when planted in groups.
This species prefers full sun to light shade, although the flowers last longer if the plants are given light afternoon shade. It requires average, well-drained soil with medium moisture. Maintenance is low. To promote bushy growth, trim blue star’s stems to eight to ten inches after flowering is complete to promote bushy growth.
Blue star flowers’ nectar attracts the Ruby-throated Hummingbird and many long-tongued insects, including the Large Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa virginica), Hummingbird moths (Hemaris species), and various butterflies.